The tale of "Sidventures," a photo book that doubles as a children’s story, starts here in Omaha, on a frigid December day in Dundee. Alex Hopes was just hanging out at home when he got a phone call that would eventually alter his life.

He told The Reader about it in an email interview from his home in Austin, Texas, where he now makes a living as a photographer.

When I was a kid, a cousin of mine introduced me to worry dolls. Hand-crafted dolls traditionally made in Guatemala, they are usually only about an inch tall. But these colorful miniatures aren’t toys. Their purpose is to take your worries away, hence the name.

For a time, we thought they were the coolest things ever. We would tell them our worries (or wishes) and put them under our pillows when we went to bed. But...

I used to write these CD review wrap-ups on a quarterly basis, but now that The Reader has gone monthly I've pulled back to doing them just twice a year. As a result, there's a ton more recordings to consider.

In fact, so far 2015 has been a benchmark year for new music, at least from an indie perspective. There have been more quality indie records released at this point in the year than any other year I can...

The rest of this year and next year are shaping up to be a phenomenal time to be a video game fan, especially if you've been playing games for a while and desperately crossing your fingers for a new release or a remake of an old favorite. Here are some of the biggest highlights so far and why you should be as excited as everyone on your facebook feed—and these are in no specific order because far be it from me to...

Previouly we wrote about what would be happening over the weekend at the first ever O Comic Con! at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs.

Walter Koenig of Star Trek: The Original Series was there. Jamie Bamber of Battlestar: Galactica was there. Professional wrestler Mick Foley was there. Voice actors Billy West of Futurama and Maurice LaMarche of Pinky and the Brain were there. Naomi Grossman of American...

As you read this, I will have crossed the line to the age of 50. And despite what I'd been told all my life, despite what I've seen in the lives of others who grew up around me, things haven't slowed down as I've gotten older.

Tuesday night I went to see the rock band Palma Violets at The Waiting Room; Wednesday morning I went to a funeral. This morning I woke at 4 a.m. to write this column. Tonight I plan on...